Question

The nurse is caring for a 78-year-old client admitted from home who sustained a significant laceration to the scalp when he tripped and fell while trying to light his cigarette. during the head-to-toe assessment, the nurse notes that he has a large stage 3 decubitus ulcer over the sacral area. his past medical history includes diabetes, hypertension, copd, and kidney transplant 15 years ago. he weighs 110 pounds and is 5′7″. the nurse notices that he has generalized edema. differentiate between primary and secondary intention, and give an example of each from the scenario above. what factors in the scenario above may impair the healing process and why? summarize the three phases of healing.

Answer 1

Primary intention means the dermal edges are closed together with sutures, glue, staples, or tape. An example would be suturing the man's laceration on his scalp. Secondary intention means the dermal edges cannot be closed together. An example would be packing this man's pressure ulcer, allowing it to granulate. Factors that may impair his healing process are: his age, his chronic conditions (diabetes, hypertension, COPD, and kidney transplant), as well as being a smoker. All of these conditions affect the blood supply and the body's ability to heal quickly. Having a transplant implies that he is also immunosuppressed. The three phrases of healing are: inflammatory stage, proliferation stage, and finally the remodeling stage.